PHOENIX — The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday refused Arizona’s emergency bid to pause a court-ordered receivership of the state’s prison healthcare system, clearing the way for an outside administrator to take control on Oct. 19.
Justice Elena Kagan denied the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry’s stay request after the department had already lost similar bids in federal district court and at the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The order leaves intact District Judge Roslyn Silver’s February decision to strip ADCRR of day-to-day control of medical and mental-health care for roughly 25,000 people in state custody.
Inmates first sued in 2012, arguing substandard care caused preventable suffering and death in violation of the Eighth Amendment. A 2014 settlement collapsed; Silver found widespread constitutional violations in 2022 and imposed a permanent order with more than 150 quality indicators. Plaintiffs returned in 2025 with expert reports describing continued neglect, and Silver appointed Annette Chambers-Smith — formerly Ohio’s corrections director — as receiver.
ADCRR hired former U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement for stay briefing and paid about $300,000 for the effort, according to Attorney General’s Office correspondence cited in coverage. Clement argued Silver moved too quickly to receivership and that losing control would harm Arizona’s sovereign interests. Plaintiff lawyers countered that the state twice failed to fix a system marked by “widespread and shocking” neglect and that receivership is needed to save lives.
ACLU National Prison Project deputy director Corene Kendrick said Arizona spent years fighting accountability while people in custody “continue to suffer and die from preventable causes.” Legislative leaders Warren Petersen and Steve Montenegro filed an amicus brief warning that a receiver could press the Legislature on budgets and seek waivers of state laws.
The merits fight continues at the 9th Circuit, with plaintiff briefs due Oct. 15 and oral argument set for Dec. 7. Absent further relief, Chambers-Smith’s takeover starts in just over two weeks — the most dramatic federal intervention into Arizona corrections in a generation.